Whose rules? Whose land? Whose water?

Chen Gao: Whose rules? Whose land? Whose water?: Water rights, equity and justice in Dujiangyan water conservation area

Location: Dujiangyan, China
Mentors: Gregory Bracken, Tanja Herdt
Keywords: Water conservation, Dujiangyan irrigation area, water justice, sustainable development 

With the explosive growing population in Chengdu, the demand for urban drinking water is increasing, and the application of water conservation regulations is becoming more and more stringent. However, with the delineation of water source protection zones, villages and small counties in the upper reaches of Chengdu have been aff ected a lot. Metropolis gain priority on water and the indigenous people are sacrifi ced in the process of water resource utilization with both economic and water culture loss. Interventions that try to improve the life of indigenous people in the process of protecting water sources sometimes exacerbate this injustice. Therefore, this research is aiming to build a framework of how to measuring both physical and virtual water values, a development strategy in this peri-urban context, and feasible governance to keep the balance of diff erent demands to pursue water justice in the Dujiangyan irrigation area.

For more information on Chen: Twitter @Chen17193372